The present invention relates generally to mirror assemblies, mirror and light assemblies, and various other accessory assemblies, and more particularly to apparatus for mounting such assemblies on a seat assembly for a vehicle or other such device.
Automotive vehicle sunvisors having lighted vanity mirrors for forward seat passengers are known in the art. Such mirrors are normally located on the side of the visor facing the passenger when in lowered position and may be adjusted to the desired reflecting angle through adjustment of the visor, the angle of the mirror relative to the visor being fixed. These mirrors, as well as various lights and other vehicle accessories are frequently provided for the comfort and convenience of forward seat passengers.
In general, no similar vanity mirrors or other such accessories have been available for the convenience of rear seat passengers. Also, the only lights generally available for rear seat passengers for reading or the like while the vehicle is underway have been located in the header of the roof, or in some cases in side pillars of the vehicle. Such lights, if shining while the vehicle is underway, can be distracting to the driver and can possibly impair his clear vision of outside traffic conditions, particularly at night.
Accordingly, it is the primary object of the present invention to provide a vanity mirror and map or reading light arrangement which overcomes the aforementioned disadvantages of prior arrangements. The invention resides in the provision of a mirror assembly, or a miror and light or other accessory assembly, which is mounted so as to be disposed generally on the rear side of one or both of the front vehicle seat assemblies, either on the seat portion or on the head restraint portion thereof.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a multi-position vanity mirror, a multi-position vanity mirror and map or reading light, or other accessory arrangements for back seat passengers, as well as one which may be covered if desired.
Another object of the present invention resides in the provision of a neat, attractive head restraint for front seats which incorporates a vanity mirror, a vanity mirror and map or reading light, or other vehicle accessory arrangement for back seat passengers.
Another object of the present invention is to provide such a vanity mirror, a vanity mirror and light, or other accessory arrangement with a mounting apparatus that is relatively simple and inexpensive to manufacture and install either as standard or optional equipment on the vehicle, and that can be relatively easily removed and replaced if repairs or servicing is needed.
Front seat head restraints, or head rests, whether integrated or separate from the seat, have now become safety mandated standard equipment in order to protect passengers against neck injuries resulting from sudden vehicle acceleration caused by rear end collisions. Such head restraints are normally in close alignment with the forward vision of rear seat passengers. This has been discovered to provide an excellent location for a vanity mirror or other vehicle accessories for use by a rear seat passenger, except that most head restraints, unlike sunvisors, have a relatively fixed position so as not to easily accommodate adjustment of mirror angle. However, conventional head restraints do have a substantial depth, relatively greater than the thickness of a sunvisor, and this has been found to be sufficient to accommodate a pivotal mounting for the mirror within the headrest.
Typically, many vehicle seat assemblies having such head restraints include one or more head restraint mounting members or apparatuses that interconnect and support the head restraints relative to the seat, either in a fixed, or in a generally vertically adjustable, relationship therewith. Whether such head restraint mounting apparatuses support the head restraints in positions spaced apart from the seats, or in contact or engagement with the seats, they have been discovered to provide a suitable and convenient structure to which a mirror assembly, a mirror and light assembly, or other vehicle accessory assembly can be anchored and retained, usually with little or no modification to the seat assembly. Thus, the present invention provides for mounting apparatus for connecting such assemblies to such head restraint mounting apparatus in order to support the assemblies generally either on the rear side of the seat, or on the rear side of the head restraint. Among other advantages, such an arrangement allows a vehicle manufacturer to offer such assemblies as either standard equipment or as optional equipment on a particular vehicle, usually without the necessity of manufacturing and providing different seat or head restraint components of the seat assembly.
Furthermore, the provision of side lights on the mirror combined with a suitable pivoting action has also been found to provide a convenient supplemental reading or map light for the rear passengers which, in fact, may take the place of and obviate the necessity for a conventional overhead header or pillar light, with its attendant disadvantages.
Additional objects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from a reading of the detailed description of the preferred embodiments, which make reference to the following set of drawings.